Part of the process involved a cross-sectional consultation, the report of which is available on the CAAH website or the YAA health Division Website.

The consultation was also convened online on the ReachOut website, where young people over four weeks were asked a series of questions on forums. One of the questions related to what works best in health care, and I thought it appropriate that one of the responses from a young person be shared here, as it is good advice for all health care and youth workers:

Don’t judge us…

Be open and accepting of what we tell you

Don’t talk in a language we won’t understand…

Use words we can take with us

Don’t break our confidentiality…

Explain to us about this so we are aware of it

Don’t focus on the negative aspects of our lives…

Help us to see the positives as well

Don’t try to force your values and perspectives onto us…

Help us to discover our possibilities and choices

Don’t try and lead us where you want us to go…

Walk beside us and offer a helping hand along the way

Youth Commentary

Dr Illias Adam Lee

This is a blog, not a word for word recount of the conference, so I must say that I was disappointed in this ‘youth commentary’ as very little of it was a youth commentary, much more of it was a service profile. Some interesting points were made though.

Dr Lee reiterated the fact that youth and young people are not a homogeneous group. They are made up of different subcultures and groups and are going through a transitional time in their lives, as workers we need to be ready to adapt to these changes.

He spoke also about the five As of Penang Family Planning Association which could be a good framework for our health promotion

• Advocacy
• Abortion
• Access
• Adolescents
• AIDS/HIV.

Teenz Bistari Program

Dr. Siti Nurbaya binti Shahir

Dr. Shahir responded to a double in the number of unwed mothers in her district of work in 2005/06. It was a particular problem for her area because all the young women becoming pregnant would stop study, and most would end up relying on Malaysian welfare payments.

In response, Dr. Shahir started a three prong program which included an education session, promotion materials and an SMS service. The education sessions were open to 100 girls from each of the 5 schools in the area who are identified as problematic. To be problematic a girl could fall under any of the following categories:

• Has had a boyfriend
• Has been reported for truancy
• Has run away from home
• Difficult family issues
• Parents dissatisfied with children’s behaviour

The program is interesting for a few reasons. The education session is run by the local doctor (Dr. Shahir) and the teachers of the girls, and includes a question and answer section. Due to Muslim custom, abstinence is the line put forward, but the doctor makes it know that if girls require help with contraception she is willing to do that outside the realms of the education session. At each session she has run she has had between 15 and 30 questions, which indicates a group willing to learn.

The SMS service is run solely by the doctor, who will even reply to SMSs at 3am, if she is up. AT least 31 girls use the service and most use it more than once, having conversation and follow up, often including referral to the doctors office.

The SMS service is advertised with banners and bookmarks available to see by all school children in the area and focus on the messages that ‘sex before marriage can cause damage’, ‘girls deserve to be treated with respect’ and ‘the SMS service is confidential’. Fantastic messages.

I’m in Control : Community Based Skill Building

Norzila Ahmad

In Malaysia, over 50% of HIV new infections are occurring in under 25s.

A baby is left abandoned every 5 days.

50% of rape victims are under 18.

84% of rape victims know their victims.

The situation in the home of the conference can be dire for young people, and the levels of education are not great either.

Only 54% of young people in a survey could identify reproductive organs.

Ms. Ahmad spoke about the service Kafe@TEEN which has three health services in Malaysia. It was inspiring to see a health service which was so holistic and had so many soft entry points, and was working so well. In three years of operation they have provided counselling to 5000 young people and provided outreach service to over 84000 young people.

Services provided included net cafes, gyms, libraries, camps and of course clinical health services and counselling.

Now, that’s a good model to look up to.

I left the hotel at 7:30, and by 7:32 I was sweating more than I have in my life, without breakfast in my tummy (I thought a sleep in would be better). The conference kicked off (and remained) on time, the whole day. Fantastic. Below are a few highlights from the day, with more to come later.

Safer Sex from A-Z : Teaching Youth the Whole Alphabet

Plenary by Willard Cates Jr.

Willard commented on the issue of HIV and STIs as a youth problem. For those of us working in the youth health field, this comes as no surprise, but it always helps to have a refresher. When we look at adolescents we are dealign with a multitude of factors that increase their link to HIV and STIs.

• Biological Disposition
• Behavioural Disposition
• Social Networks
• Lack of life experience and being at a time in their life where they actively seek sex to see what they like

Add to this the fact that youth sexual health is a political lightning rod and it is a dangerous topic to broach.

And when it is broached, it is often broached in a very polarising way, which Willard likes to describe as the ABC approach. We choose from Abstinence and Being Faithful, or Condoms. This approach divides people greatly, and makes us think about sexual health in terms of ‘prevention from illness’, but there is a real opportunity to start thinking about ‘sexual health’ in terms of wellness and staying well.

To give a bit of a global perspective on the issue, consider the statistics provided:

• 1/4 of women under 19 have an STI in the USA
• There is a massive racial disparity between Caucasian, Latina and Black women, with Caucasian women having the least number of infections
• There is a very high prevalence of STIs soon after sexual debut, so much so that future thinking might see the genital herpes virus not so much as an STI, but as a marker of sexual activity.
• An increase in STI infection in rural youth is occurring

Willard went on to talk about the two ABC arguments.

The Abstinence Group states that abstinence provides 100% protection against STIs. When we look at how it works, this is essentially true, so funding and legislation was provided for that method, however it got to the point where funding and legislation removed condom education from the picture, going so far as to talk negatively about condoms.

So, they have a point, when used perfectly abstinence is great, but it is rarely used perfectly. When used perfectly, the chance of a non HIV+ partner in a relationship with a HIV+ partner contracting the illness is near to 0%, but when used ‘typically’, that chance increases to around 80%. In saying that, there is a lot of research on either side, that suggests comprehensive and abstinence only sexual health education programs do or do not work, some with more bias than others.

Overall, the main problem with abstinence only is adherence.

On the other hand, the Condom argument people argue for aggressive condom distribution tactics, which can be culturally inappropriate. Some programs which encourage 100% condoms use, like sex work parlours in Cambodia, have seen massive reductions in new HIV infections in these environments, so perhaps there is merit in that argument.

Some more stats, for those who are interested:

In a HIV discordant couple (one positive partner, one negative) for those who always use condoms, there is an 0.9% chance of contracting HIV, for those who report sometimes 5.1% and for those who report never – 6.5%.

The main problem with condoms (get ready for a punchline) is also adherence

Now, the main benefit in both condoms and abstinence is they create a delay. And delay is one of the greatest things we can create in health promotion. And as both can be effective, we need to use the right message for the right audience at the right time. No approach should be used alone. We can move towards a holistic view of healthy sex, rather than absence of disease, where we talk about sex as consensual, non-exploitative, honest, protected and pleasurable. And for many of us, pleasure will be the hardest to to talk about.

Insights on sentencing…

In mid Oct the SBS TV Insight program will be recording a program on the sentencing of child sex offenders.  If you have a view on this topic which you’d like to share with us, it’d be great to hear from you. 

The sorts of questions we’re interested in hearing your views on are:

• How would you feel if a known pedophile moved into your area?
• How long do you think convicted pedophiles should spend in prison?
• Do you think pedophiles can be rehabilitated? 

Please send your opinions and thoughts to claire.absolum@sbs.com.au.

 International Harm Reduction Conference 2010…

The International Harm Reduction Association (IHRA), the Conference Consortium and Liverpool John Moores University are now accepting abstracts for Harm Reduction 2010: IHRA’s 21st International Conference. 

The abstract submission system will close in a few weeks – on November 1st 2009. 

All delegates who wish to present at the conference – either orally or with a poster – are encouraged to make submissions about innovative harm reduction services, new or ground-breaking research, effective or successful advocacy campaigns, or key policy discussions or debates. In order to submit an abstract, you must first register for the conference (http://www.ihraconferences.com/2010/)  and create a new user account. Once you have done this, simply click on the ‘your submissions’ link and follow the instructions. 

Please note that you must register online in order to present at the conference, and that presenting at the conference is the only way to receive a scholarship to attend.

The Executive Programme Committee for 2010 is particularly keen to receive abstract submissions that relate to the conference theme – Harm Reduction: The Next Generation. This theme will reflect upon two and a half decades of harm reduction experience (including substantial scientific evidence showing that harm reduction works), but will also explore what is needed to move on to the next twenty years. 

Please visit www.ihraconferences.net for further information or contact us at info@conferenceconsortium.com.

Slept with 2.8 million people? The average British man has…

An interesting article which discusses the ‘sex degrees of seperation’.

Hep C+ man shares his story on YouTube…

Maceon is a guy who lives in Sydney and is involved in community-based education and awareness raising in NSW, Australia. He features in a new DVD produced by the Hepatitis C Council of NSW. It contains stories from several different speakers and is used as a facilitation tool when our Education and Development team conducts sessions outside the Sydney metropolitan region. 

The DVD is an in-house tool and not for general distribution but you can click here to view a YouTube of Maceon’s story. 

Click here for more information about the C-een and Heard Speakers service. 

Special thanks to Maceon for publically sharing his story.

Make Love, Make Films…

Entries are still open for the 2nd annual  pre=”annual “>Lovemakingfilmfestival, run by 2Cfilms, in conjunction with the SESIAHS HARP unit. Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are on the rise, with the most common, Chlamydia, increasing by rates of over 300 percent in the past nine years. The people most affected by this dramatic rise in STIs are Generation Y, people in their late teens and 20’s. The lovemakingfilmfestival engages budding filmmakers to submit a humorous short film that promotes safe sex and helps to educate their peers on the increase in STIs among young adults in the Sydney Region.

Participants are able to submit entries ranging from high-end video productions through to short videos shot on their mobile phones. Festival Director Cameron Craig explained the unique nature of an on-line film festival delivering the safe sex message. “Gen Y is also often referred to as the MySpace or Facebook generation. By tapping into the user-generated content phenomenon’s such as You Tube we can directly access the audience and interact with them on their own terms…our objective is to excite and engage the target group and get them thinking about the issues of safe sex.”

For information on prizes and judging of films, or to submit a film, please visit www.lovemakingfilmfestival.com.au

Entries close 31st October

A sad farewell…

YAA and the HOT Project would like to wish Jackie Davis well in her new position at the Association for Children’s Welfare Agencies. Her amazing zeal and dedication, combined with a passion for her work made her a priceless and invaluable resource to our team. It is with a lot of fond memories and new knowledge that HOT says goodbye.

Jackie, your contributions to HOT and YAA, both socially and professionally will be remembered for a long time.

DOR Baby.

Condoms, chlamydia and cab rides

A novel service in the UK has seen cabbies being able to offer condoms and chlamydia self testing kits in the back of their taxis.

International Sex-Ed guidelines opposed

An interesting article which raises questions about education vs. culture

Footy stars at it again

Mad Monday, an annual football celebration is once again causing concern, as role models in our community brandish sex toys and get into fights. Could be an interesting artucle to discuss what young men could look for in a sexual role model.

Rural areas lack education on STIs

A short report from Queensland which highlights a link between access to information and ecuation and rising STI rates.

December 1 is World AIDS Day. It was declared by the World Health Organization to raise public awareness about HIV/AIDS issues, including the need for support and understanding for people living with HIV/AIDS. Over the past 20 years, World AIDS Day has been established as one of the world’s most successful commemorative days. With the red ribbon as its international symbol, World AIDS Day is now recognised and observed by millions of people in more than 190 countries around the globe.

HIV is preventable and treatable but almost thirty years since its first diagnosis, HIV is still here, and there is no cure yet.

In 2009, the NSW World AIDS Day Project wants people in NSW to know that HIV is still here, how HIV can be transmitted and how HIV transmission can be prevented.                     

If your organisation operates in NSW, works with young people under 30 years and is:  

• a non-government organisation,
• a community organisation/ group, or
• a local government or other government organisation 
• not funded by NSW Health, ACON or Family Planning NSW

You may be eligible to apply for a grant up to $1000 promote World AIDS Day 2009!

The NSW World AIDS Day project will be providing grants to projects that increase awareness and understanding about HIV, HIV transmission and encourage people to think about the choices they make in relation to preventing transmission of HIV.

Priority will be given to innovative and creative projects and that engage for example the following people:  homeless young people, same sex attracted (gay, lesbian, bisexual) and transgender young people, young people in correctional facilities, Aboriginal young people, young people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds as well as health and youth workers.

Project activities and events should take place during AIDS Awareness Week 23rd – 30^th November, or on World AIDS Day December 1 and up to December 4

Please contact your local South Eastern Sydney Illawarra Area Health Service representative Damian Castles for more information and to request an application package.

The closing date for applications is FRIDAY October 2 2009. 

Damian Castles 

damian.castles@sesiahs.health.nsw.gov.au

Phone: 4221 6730

Fax: 4221 6722

Post: Locked Bag 9, Wollongong, 2500

The campaign focuses on the message of Get Tested, Play Safe, encouraging people to think about how many people they have slept with, and then consider all the sexual partners those people may have had as well, because sleeping with one person, is sleeping with many. The campaign is centred around a website gettested.com.au which incorporates some simple information and an interactive image to demonstrate just how many people you have ‘really’ slept with.

The campaign also has a television commercial, which you can view here, and is supported by resources which will be available to services from your local Area Health Service. For those services in Sydney, you can contact your HIV and Related Programs Unit who will be distributing resources as part of Sexual Health Week. For those services out outside of Greater Sydney, email the HOT Project for copies of these resources.

A great article about the campaign, with a rather unfortunate headline can be found here

HOT encourages you to use this campaign as an opportunity  to start discussions about Sexual health with young people at your service, and if you would like some more ideas about how you can go about this, please get in contact with the HOT Project.

Sexual Health Week is only 18 days away. Keep your eyes out for resource order forms and events.

For more information on where to get resources or where events are being held near you, please contact Brandon.

May be very useful for those who are working in restorative justice, or transitional housing.